ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced Friday that it had killed a senior Islamic State (ISIS) leader along with two of his sons in a raid in northwestern Syria’s al-Bab city.

“Early this morning in al-Bab, Aleppo Governorate, Syria, CENTCOM Forces conducted a raid resulting in the death of senior ISIS Leader, Dhiya’ Zawba Muslih al-Hardani, and his two adult ISIS-affiliated sons, Abdallah Dhiya al-Hardani and Abd al-Rahman Dhiya Zawba al-Hardani,” reads a statement by CENTCOM.

It added that “these ISIS individuals posed a threat to US and Coalition Forces, as well as the new Syrian Government."

“Three women and children were also on the target and were unharmed,” the statement noted. 

ISIS controlled large swathes of territory in parts of Iraq and Syria following its rise in 2014. The group was declared territorially defeated in Syria in 2019.

In the wake of an expansive international campaign against the militants that saw its territorial ambitons thwarted, its remnants still operate as cells and mount hit-and-run attacks and sporadic bombings, , posing a danger to the security in the areas it once controlled.

Despite ongoing efforts to eliminate ISIS, the group remains a significant threat to regional stability and security through these lingering cells.

“We will continue to relentlessly pursue ISIS terrorists wherever they are. ISIS terrorists are not safe where they sleep, where they operate, and where they hide,” said Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, the CENTCOM commander, adding that together with their partners, they are "committed to the enduring defeat of ISIS terrorists that threaten the region, our allies, and our homeland.”

Last month, CENTCOM announced that it had supported six operations targeting ISIS in Iraq and Syria between May 21 and 27.